America's Fall?

I truly believe that America is headed for a fall.  When history looks back at the United States they will look at the amazing rise of the Original Thirteen Colonies into most likely was the greatest power ever. History will also look at the fall ad it will surprise many how quickly it all came apart

(UPDATE: Click here to see my reponse to a reader's comment Somebody doesn't like me).

As with all great powers, a point is reached when that power begins to ebb and then erode entirely. Most often, this occurs over several generations. From the point of peak power and influence to the point where the nation’s or empire’s authority no longer matters is a drawn out process. While the fall certainly takes less time than the buildup, the fall is still a process that takes some time to occur.

Not so with the US. We reached our peak of power during the end of the previous century. We were the determining factor in the outcome of two world wars, our innovation lead the world and ushered in the age of the middle class. Our manufacturing capabilities and the can-do spirit that was a hallmark buried the rest of the world. We built cars and ships and consumer goods that were the envy of the rest of the world. We were an economic, military, and political juggernaut that so influenced the world that it runs on our currency and our language.

Our fall has been precipitous. While there still may be time to recover what we once were, we have probably reached a tipping point from which the abyss of irrelevancy is clearly visible.

Our moral decay has reached a point that rivals any of the other great empires just prior to their fall. In times past, when a nation has lost its moral compass the fall is not too far behind.  Over the last couple of decades our moral compass has been leading us astray.

The sexual revolution and feminism has brought about sex with no obligation. Teen pregnancy, while it has fallen a little in recent years, continues to be a huge problem and is a direct contributing factor to the decay of the stable family. No longer do men feel the need to be a part of the lives of the children they helped create and no longer do may women feel it is necessary to raise a child with the help of a father.

Our unions, while once completely necessary to protect workers, have priced our labor out of competition with the rest of the world. It has become cheaper for a US based company to send the manufacturing process overseas and have the end product shipped back here. Add to the mix that the unions are really no longer concerned with the rights of workers but more concerned with “social justice” you have a recipe for the decline in American made goods and jobs.

Our moral compass has become so off course that with New York now allowing same-sex marriages, there are six states that allow this course of action. God has never intended for men or women to be married to a same-sex partner. His opposition to this is quite clear throughout the Bible. We have turned away from His Word. No matter how often liberals and progressive try to say otherwise, our Founding Fathers based the Constitution on Judeo-Christian values taught in the Bible. There is just too much supporting evidence in the Federalist Papers to say otherwise.

Our can-do spirit has departed us. Right not, almost one out of every two Americans depend on the US government for some sort of entitlement. What was once intended as a helping hand up has become a crutch. Too many people are saying “why should I work hard when the government will give me everything I need?” Rather than be a way out from a life of poverty, welfare programs has become a way of life.

Lying, cheating, and stealing have become accepted norms, no longer cause for serious sanctions. Former President Bill Clinton had liaisons in the Oval Office and when he was caught, both he and his wife lied about it. Yet he is now considered the “Grand Old Man” of the democrat party. Yet he remained president. It took nearly three weeks for Anthony Wiener to announce his resignation (he still hasn't left yet) despite the bold-faced lies. Most likely Wiener is going to land on his feet with a job that pays much better than the one he has now.

Is there any hope for us? I believe there is, but there has to be a change in how we live our lives. We have to be able to look at ourselves and say things have to change.

We need to have some form of accountability. When a man fathers a child, at the very least, make them financially responsible for the life they helped create. Feminist women need to be educated on the impacts on children not having both sets of parents involved.

This whole gay marriage nonsense needs to stop. We need to stand fast against gay marriage. People in the remaining 44 states need to ensure their state leadership understands that allowing gay marriage to become legal is not acceptable. Allow some form of civil unions so the partners can be protected but just don’t call it marriage. The Roman Empire fell when satisfying the carnal desires became the primary motivating factor.

Union members need to take back their unions. Take away leadership from those that use the office as a political platform. You might think the democrat party is the party of the worker but you are really nothing but pawns in their continuing quest for “social justice.” Think about this for a minute: Who would you rather have as your proponent, an entity that always seems to have their sights set on destroying businesses with regulations and out of control start up fees, or a political party that wants to see businesses grow? One group is only concerned with their agenda and has spent years doing whatever they could to make running a business in the US as difficult as possible, stymieing growth. Your other choice wants to see businesses grow. And when businesses grow, jobs are created. Our greatest period of economic growth was in the late 50’s through the 60’s. This is when unions were strong, yet businesses were not handcuffed with overbearing regulations. We supplied the world with manufactured goods. Our auto industry was the envy of the world. Get back to the basics of what a union is supposed to do. Protect the members. Work in partnership with company leadership to make our manufacturing sector vibrant once again. It might require a step backwards. But is it better to have a lower wage or no wage at all?

We need to gain control of our entitlement programs. Bring them back to where and what they need to be; a helping hand up. Put time limits on the programs. Don’t let these programs be a crutch. There was a time when living in poverty really meant something. It was difficult to put food on the table when you were living in poverty. Now it just means you can’t have i-phone for everyone, or there are only two TVs with cable hook ups in the house. Cut the entitlement programs to a point that when folks are on a program, they want off as soon as they can. Entitlements shouldn’t be so folks can pay for their fancy cell phone plans or for cable TV hook ups. If folks want these things, then they need to get jobs. So what if they have to do without these luxuries for a while, it can be an incentive.

We are in a decline. The US century is eleven years behind us. We need to reclaim our spot on top once again. We can do it, but it will take hard work and sacrifice. We may have to go back a few generations, back to when we didn’t have it all. We need to step back and rediscovery what it was that made us great. Then we can begin the difficult shore of bringing us back from the edge of the abyss.